Change comes at us rapidly from all directions. What innovations do we implement in response to current developments in libraries? On this episode of Library Leadership Podcast, we talk with Miguel Figueroa, Director for the Center for the Future of Libraries (www.ala.org/libraryofthefuture), an initiative from the American Library Association.

Miguel shares how everyone in libraries can be empowered to think about the future with unique access points and perspectives. He guides us in evaluating innovations, based on the values of the profession to provide forward-thinking services to our communities. From virtual reality to daily resource allocation, this show helps answer your questions about when to act, or not act, and how to prioritize trends.

Full Transcript

This podcast is brought to you by the School of Library and
Information Management from Emporia State University where library leaders are
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and by the Park City Library, making film and podcasting possible with green
screen and sound recording resources.

Miguel identifies emerging trends, promotes futuring, and
innovation techniques in libraries, and builds connections with experts and
innovative thinkers – which we’re all about here at Library Leadership Podcast.
You won’t want to miss this show.

It’s a pleasure. Well, I know that the Center for the Future
of Libraries is doing so much to identify emerging trends, promote futuring,
build connections with experts in the field. Can you tell us a little about
what you’ve got going on?

Sure. So, we started this Future of Libraries project about
four years ago. It’s based on some work that our colleagues at the American
Alliance of Museums have done. They started the Center for the Future of
Museums in 2008, I think. They had that basic charge that said, associations do
a really good job of promoting best practices from within the profession but,
especially in today’s world of change, that associations might also do good
work helping their members and the larger profession look at some of the larger
global trends that might eventually affect the work that we do. And, ALA’s
leadership took that initiative and started to roll it out. And, I’ve been
lucky enough to be involved with it from the start.

It’s interesting in a lot of ways. I think it’s what really
good library leaders and library innovators have always done. They’ve had a
very close eye on what’s happening within their organization and immediate
environment, but they also take full responsibility of looking at the global
context of change and really starting to integrate those changes into the
fundamental practices that have made libraries enduring institutions for
generations. So, oftentimes, I’m just trying to save a little bit of time for
some of the users and say, What if ALA
provided a perpetual trend scan?

I spent a lot of my time trying to identify trends that are
of interest to libraries, that connect with our library values and try to
articulate how those trends are developing, and why they might matter for
libraries. From futuring and foresight, they say that thinking about the future
starts by observing trends and changes that will have both an organizational,
environmental, and a global context. And, then to start to articulate the
possible ways that those trends and changes could evolve in our world. And, to
prepare ourselves, not to predict the exact future, but to really say, OK, well – how can I understand the systems
that might push us in different directions, so I’ll be better prepared no matter
what the future might hold?

Absolutely. Well, and we appreciate you doing that work for
us and helping libraries across the United States keep track of what’s going on
and respond to those. What are you seeing out there? What are librarians asking
you, and how can we all get better at this?

Well, I think libraries are doing a really good job of
adapting to new ways of learning, and certainly new content formats. I think
those things are core to who we are. So, we’ve made significant shifts towards
more connected hands-on learning methods and techniques. I think we’re starting
to appreciate the different content formats that users are interested in, and
trying to adapt to those models. I think right now, one of the more interesting
questions that I continue to receive is a question of physical space, and
what’s the importance of physical space in an increasingly digital world. I
think libraries are really well positioned because we have firm roots in our
communities, or in our campuses, or school districts. But, we’re also trying to
intermix digital resources and allow people to have a kind of visible, digital,
hybrid experience. It’s just going to be a matter of continuing to refine the
packages that we make, how well designed our resources are, and the ease of use
for the user. So, I think that those are really interesting.

As far as what I think librarians are seen and learning? In
a lot of ways, I think this futuring work has to lead to a change in culture. I
think sometimes within libraries we think the responsibility for thinking of
the future belongs to the library director or a team of the library administration
level. And, I think for futurists and for say, professionals they believe that
everyone can be empowered to think about the future. Because we all have
different access points and perspectives on the changes that are happening in
the organization, in the environment, and at the global level, it really does
need to be an ongoing conversation that involves multiple people at the
institution. It can’t just be something that we pick up every three years or
once every five years when we write a strategic plan. But it has to be that
sort of ongoing conversation.

I appreciate, especially when I go out and have an
opportunity to talk with library staff, how many people have ideas, and how
many people feel empowered to start to share those ideas within the context of
talking about the future. Because it really is a pursuit of collective
intelligence of everybody lending their vision towards identifying those
possible scenarios for the future. And, when we do that, we develop new insights
around what the future might be.

I really like the way you put that. We talk a lot about that
in my staff. I’m a public library director as well as a podcast host, and the
other morning in a start-up meeting, one of my staff members said, Well I wasn’t going to say this, but then I
remembered you told me, we’re all leaders. And, then she shared a really
innovative idea, which was great.

We all lead from different areas. I think that’s the other
thing. The great thing about the trends and the changes that are happening in
our world is that they don’t come through exclusively one direction. It could
be really easy for us to think that it’s technology that we have to look
towards. And, so it’s those tech-savvy individuals who are going to lead our
future. But, in truth, the demographic changes that are happening, the cultural
changes that are happening, those are things that lots of us lead with. That we
have that perspective to our work, as first and foremost, whether we’re a
children’s librarian or any one of a number of roles, or personal traits that
we may have. So, there’s lots of opportunities to chime in.

Yeah, I think it’s weird, as I look through futuring and
foresight literature they don’t talk as much about values. So, it’s something
that I started to realize, especially as I got feedback from different people
in the library profession. When we talk about trends and changes, it’s really
easy to study the trends and to identify how they’re developing – the sort of
progression through the world that shows that this is a sustained trend. But,
if we really want to take action, we have to figure out well, what does it mean
for libraries?

And, I kept trying to articulate what it meant for
libraries. And, at some point, a couple of people came up and said, what you’re
really hitting on are the values that we have, that libraries don’t follow
trends for popularity or for profit. We follow and use trends to make them
useful for the values that we stand behind. That we believe in equitable
access. We believe in a civic commons. We believe in intellectual freedom,
privacy, and other types of things. So, when we look at a trend or a change,
we’re not just looking at, oh, this is happening, and then we scurry off and
work. We really look at it, and say, OK,
I’m going to say this is happening. But, I’m also going to interpret and
say, This is what it means for the
reasons that I came into this profession. And, this is what it means for what I
think the library provides to a community.

I think that’s really helpful because it allows us to
prioritize certain trends and changes, so that we say this is really important
for the values that I hold most dear within my community, it’s that sort of
sense of urgency to act on this trend, and to make it meaningful for that value
that I have.

At the opposite end, we may see some trends that we say, This is really detrimental to some of the
values that I have. I really need to spend some time thinking about how the
library might intervene in this trends development, or how the library might be
more responsible and reactive to help the community contend with a particularly
negative trend.

And, then there may also be trends where we don’t really see
it resonating right now within our values set. And, for those trends, perhaps,
that’s the indication that we don’t need to spend a lot of energy or resources
acting on that particular trend or change, but we want to maintain an
observation of that.

So, I think the values are kind of a litmus test by which we
say, if we’re going to act, or if we don’t need to act. And, maybe even the
ways in which we react to a particular trend or change. I think we are so
fortunate to have a firm set of professional values that guides the work that
we do and make sure that we continue to be responsible and valuable in years to
come.

I like that. And, we have a lot of values here at the Park
City Library, where I work. Empowering minds, inspiring imagination, connecting
community, and we always circle back on how we’re doing that with the choices
we make regarding our resources and implementing programs. You just had an article
in American Libraries Magazine on virtual reality, which we did choose to
invest in. And, I’m curious what you’re seeing going on out, there that might
just be fun, or interesting to think about.

Well, I think within virtual reality there is a great
example of how libraries have looked at a particular trend, a trend in how
content and information is disseminated. And, started to filter that through
our values, and recognize that it’s certainly an issue of access to information
and access to technology. So, we’ve seen certain libraries, like in California,
where they’ve made partnerships with vendors. The full reality of technology
companies, I think, see libraries as a real first line for introducing this new
technology broadly, across communities.

So, for those libraries, they may be taking a perspective of
virtual reality as an equity of access issue. This is an emerging technology
trend and we need to make sure that future generations, and all people, have
access and understanding of this technology in order to remain competitive in
an information-rich world.

I think we’ve seen from other libraries, though, that have
said, We are interested in virtual
reality as an access to information issue but, we’re also interested in virtual
reality from a creation and expression issue. And, so I’ve seen some
libraries that have invested programming time in maybe, doing something as
simple as using mobile phones and some of their 360-degree camera capabilities.
And, so they’re working with kids too, kind of, create 360-degree videos that
enhance or augment school reports or some other sort of activity.

They’re really trying to look at that to say, Immersive video and immersive content will
not be something for us to consume, but it will be a way for us to create and
express ourselves. And, so they’re taking a slightly different value line
with that virtual reality production, and they’re looking at it from the
content creation perspective, which I think is another really great opportunity
for us to look toward.

I think that those are really great examples of how
libraries look at value, and say, We can
move in this direction because it’s particularly interesting. And, I think
the other thing is that we’ve seen a big shift in virtual reality. For a long
time, we thought it was going to be mostly entertainment, and maybe gaming, or
some sort of leisure activity. And, we’re seeing more and more reputable
publishers in VR technology as a means of transmitting information.

You know the New York Times, and National Geographic and all
of these other publishers are providing informational content in immersive
formats. So, we have to look at that also from information literacy – how will
people know how to write that content. How will they know how to integrate it
into their writings and papers, and other types of things. So that’s another
interesting opportunity for us to explore.

Those are fascinating ways of looking at things and give us
real perspective on how we might evaluate our services. As an information
professional, do you have any books or resources that you have found
particularly useful as a leader?

I think in the past year one of the books that’s really
stuck with me, is this book called When
Strangers Meet by Kio Stark. She based this book off a TED Talk that she
had given. It really looks at how people might meet and interact with each
other and spark conversations, especially when it’s conversations with complete
strangers, which is the bulk of our time out and about in public, as we often
encounter people, that we don’t meet. I thought the book was really interesting
in terms of how we confront each other and have, sometimes, difficult
conversations. Often when you’re starting from being strangers, it’s going to
be an awkward or difficult conversation, even how we talk across some of our
issues of diversity, and people who are fundamentally different or the other
from us. So, I really like that.

It reminded me in a lot of ways of two other books that I
really like, this book called Difficult
Conversations, that was by Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton, and Sheila Heen. It
was all about how to talk about the things that matter most to us, that sometimes
can spark difficult conversations – that are, really, important for us to
navigate through.

Then, there was this other book I read several years ago,
that stuck with me for years. It was called, The Cost of Bad Behavior, and it was by two researchers, I think
they’re from Harvard or were at Harvard at the time Christine Pearson, and
Christine Porath. They really looked at what are some of the breakdowns,
especially internal, within staff that create negative outcomes for the larger
organization. There are subtle things that we do to each other that limit, not
only the organization’s outcomes but our own satisfaction with our work life.
And, ultimately that have a negative effect on each other. We all have to go
home and we carry some of that baggage back with us.

This is a really difficult question for me. I guess because it
forces me to use terms that will be uncomfortable for people. Part of why I
liked libraries is because it provided an opportunity to be in service to other
people, and in service to a greater good. I know sometimes we don’t want to
think of ourselves as a service profession, and maybe we’re not a service
profession the way that term is sometimes, thrown around. But, I think that
most of what I do, I try to think of it as I’m in service to other people. So,
I don’t often think of myself as a leader in terms of a thought leader, or a
leader in terms of making plans and executing them.

I think if I’m a leader in any way, I hope and strive to be
a leader in helping to connect people together, and in helping to elevate other
people’s good ideas and good work. Those are the ways that I try and be a
leader.

I appreciate this opportunity at the Center for the Future
of Libraries because I think it’s given me that opportunity to hear from lots
of different people. And, to synthesize their ideas and try to create a platform
on which people can layer their even better, and more innovative, ideas on top
of it, to make greater goals and outcomes.

Well, I for one can say, thank you for all that you do. I
know that I’ve benefited from listening to you speak and reading your articles.
It does make a positive difference. And, so on behalf of the profession, thank
you for what you do.

You’ve been listening to Library Leadership Podcast. This is
Adriane Herrick Juarez. For more episodes, tune in to libraryleadershippodcasts.com,
where you can now subscribe to have monthly updates delivered right into your email
inbox. Our producer is Nate Vineyard. And, thanks for listening. We’ll see you
next time.

Why We Burned Our First Leadership Book, or How to Develop a Leadership Path that Holds Personal Meaning

Presenter: Adriane Herrick Jaurez

Co-Presenter : Becca Lael – Park City Library

Utah Library Association Conference

Thursday, May 16, 1:30-2:20pm

Mountain America Expo Center

How can we develop a leadership path that holds personal meaning? Inspired by interviews from the Library Leadership Podcast, a variety of strategic insights will show us how everyone can improve their leadership to personally shape their workplace, the community they serve, and the trajectory of the library profession. Attendees will learn how one library manager’s leadership path was transformed to include personal meaning, resulting in braver development.

Commencement Speaker for the Graduation of the Utah State Regional Master of Library Science ProgramFriday, January 5, 7:00pm Viridian Event Center I will be giving a commencement speech for the graduating class of Cohort 12.

Utah State History Conference
October 10th– 11th, 2017 Rio Grande Depot, 300 S. Rio Grande Street, Salt Lake City, UT Honoring the Past, Moving Into the Future: The Renovation of the Historic Park City Library that Developed a Dynamic 21st Century Library while Achieving National Historic Register Designation.

Nevada/Mountain Plains Library Association Joint ConferenceOctober 16th – 18th, 2017 Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, 50 US-50, Stateline, NV89449
Lightning-round presentation on how The Park City Library recently underwent a $9.6M library renovation that included the creation of a media lab that included a sound booth, green screen, film equipment, and other high tech amenities to foster independent media production in a ‘film-centric’ mountain town that is accessible to everyone, not just movie producers.